A Late Bloomer's Powerful Restart ~My Second Life Starts at a Prestigious School Where the Gender Ratio Is Totally Off, and for Some Reason, All These Talented Girls Get Attached to Me...!?~

Chapter 39: One Trouble Leaves, Another Arrives

I thought I had gotten used to dealing with Sasa, but her sudden move made my heart skip a beat.

“I was just thinking about something fun. Anyway, you’re heavy, so could you get off me?”

“H-heavy!?”

“When you put your full weight on my shoulders, of course… No, sorry.”

Seeing Sasa freeze up, clearly shocked, I apologized right away.
It happened so suddenly that I ended up saying something pretty tactless without thinking.
I genuinely reflected on it.

“…I’ll especially forgive you this time. But there won’t be a next time…!”

“Got it. I’ll be careful.”

Huh? That’s weird… She sounds quieter than usual, almost restrained.

Her whole demeanor could even be called ladylike… What’s going on?

Ever since the thing with Morozumi, her behavior has felt off, and it doesn’t seem like my imagination anymore.

While I was thinking about that, she naturally moved closer again… and this time she whispered right into my ear.

“――You’re looking forward to me making it up to you properly on our weekend promise, right?”

“…Yeah.”

The weekend promise was the time I agreed to go shopping for clothes with Sasa.

Since it would be just the two of us, it was basically a date. Still, the reason I didn’t feel mysteriously nervous was because I had memories from my previous life of being dragged along by her.

I thought I knew Sasa’s tastes pretty well, so it probably wouldn’t take that long.

Even so, why ask about it now of all times? …Has her mood changed somehow? She’s harder to read than before.

“What’s this~? Taiki, are you bullying Sara-chan again?”

“What do you mean ‘again’… Stop talking like I’m always the tactless one.”

Maybe because Sasa’s voice had gotten loud earlier, Tsukimi Kagurazaka came over too.
Behind her, I could also see Kano.

“That’s right!! Listen to this? Taiki made this really mean face―――”

“There, there~. Sara-chan isn’t heavy at all, is she~?”

No, I know Sasa isn’t heavy… because I actually carried her on my back before.

Wait, didn’t she just say she forgave me!?

And I wasn’t making a mean face… Sasa even said so herself…

“Mmgh…”

“Sara-chan, don’t get all sulky now~”

Fortunately, Tsukimi only looked over at us with an exasperated expression.

If she called me tactless again, I wouldn’t know what to do… Though maybe she’s just given up on me.

In a way, that’s all it is.

(At least her attacks aren’t as sharp anymore… Or maybe it’s mercy because she’s my accomplice?)

Ever since Tsukimi found out I’m from the Yashima bloodline, even when we do exchange a few words, our conversations never really go anywhere.

I have a pretty good guess why… but I can’t exactly explain it at school.

On the other hand, Kano, who had been quietly watching, kept staring straight at my face. For some reason it felt like she was blaming me, so I looked away.

(I’m grateful to Kano because she told me about Shika before… but her sense of personal space is still hard to figure out.)

In the end, the girls went straight into girl talk and naturally drifted away.

They appear suddenly and disappear suddenly… like a typhoon.

When I calmly turned back toward the guys, my eyes met Kotetsu Aoyagi’s—he was looking at me with a sour face.

“Sorry… it got noisy.”

“You… you’re really not dating Kokonoe, right…?”

I had already denied that rumor before, but since he’s sensitive to romance stuff, he still didn’t seem fully convinced.
Luckily, I have a strong ally.

“Sigh. This is just how Sasa normally operates. Right, Ousei?”

“Indeed, it’s the usual thing.”

Sasa has been barging into my dorm room and dragging me around for a while now.

In exchange, she used to keep a certain distance in the classroom… but lately she comes right up to me even when other students are around.

“――Still, maybe you really are special to her, Taiki.”

“Did you say something?”

“No, nothing.”

I thought I heard him mutter something under his breath, but Ousei was elegantly sipping his tea and looked completely composed.

Watching from the side, his calm, relaxed vibe was honestly enviable.

I’m not exactly being chased by anything, but ever since everyone found out I’m connected to the Yashima family, I feel this strange weight in my chest… That’s what I was thinking.

“Hey, Kashiwado…! You’re not planning to go after Tsukimi-chan on top of Kokonoe-san, are you!?”

“Care to explain that? Huh?”

One trouble leaves, another arrives… This time it was Kageto Tano and Seiya Yūki who showed up.

These two always hang out together—guess their tastes match.

They really are two of a kind; both of them came at me ready to pick a fight.

Their voices were loud and I almost got overwhelmed, but I stayed calm and dealt with it.

“Wait, misunderstanding. I haven’t laid a hand on Sasa, and I’ve barely even talked to Tsukimi.”

“Really…?”

“Wait, Seiya. If he really had done something, Kotetsu wouldn’t stay quiet about it.”

“Huh. Now that you mention it.”

For some reason, they seemed more convinced by Kotetsu’s attitude than by my actual explanation.

…That’s kind of pitiful for Kotetsu.

I thought that, but he was wearing the face of a giant Buddha who had just realized something profound.

“My wounded heart’s been stabbed again—I can’t even speak.”

“Sorry, man.”

Kotetsu had finally… reached a state of resignation, it seemed.

…I sincerely hope he gets a girlfriend soon and calms down.

“If the misunderstanding’s cleared up, that’s good… but wait—are you two actually after Tsukimi?”

“Wha!?”

“Shh! Keep your voice down!”

No, I deliberately lowered my voice… These guys are so dramatic.

Their attitude already made it obvious anyway. They even came over just to intimidate me like this.

“More importantly, Tano… didn’t you vote for Mishina in the last popularity poll? When did you switch sides? If you keep changing like that, the top spot would’ve been decided already…”

Back when the guys did that girls’ popularity vote, Tano and I each voted for someone outside the frontrunners, so in the end there was no clear first place. I think a tie for first was fine, honestly.

Meanwhile Yūki voted properly from the start, so he accepted it… but what happened to you?

“Sh-shut up!!”

Your voice is way louder!?

Hard to believe that came from the same guy who just told me to lower my voice. Emotionally unstable.

“Unlike the other girls, Tsukimi-chan greets me every single day, you know? How could I not fall for her…!”

“That’s way too easy.”

“Ugh—you don’t even know how blessed it is to sit behind Tsukimi-chan! I’m so jealous…”

Both Tano and Yūki had regretful looks on their faces.

I actually started feeling a little sorry for them.

Tsukimi… that girl really is dangerous.

“By the way, Kotetsu—are you aiming for Tsukimi too?”

“Taiki… you’re joking, right?”